Combat Situations
by Artemis1000
Summary: The cassette team is preparing for battle. Well, it probably counts as preparing for battle somewhere in the multiverse. Cassetticon team fic.


Transformers isn't mine, no copyright infringement intended.

**Title:** Combat Situations  
><strong>Continuity:<strong> G1  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG  
><strong>Content advice:<strong> None  
><strong>Prompt:<strong> Scenario: preparing for battle  
><strong>Characters:<strong> Soundwave, Rumble, Frenzy, Ratbat, Laserbeak, Ravage  
><strong>Summary:<strong> The cassette team is preparing for battle. Well, it probably counts as preparing for battle _somewhere_ in the multiverse.  
><strong>Notes: <strong>Advent Calendar fic for tf_speedwriting.

The cassettes were highly specialized robots, each of them perfectly equipped for a certain task. As such, it was rare that the entire team would be sent on a mission together.

The talents of spies would be wasted on Rumble and Frenzy's destructive missions, while the twins had all the subtlety of a raging Stunticon.

That was the official explanation.

There was another one, which no one outside the cassette team and maybe, just maybe, Megatron was aware of: Soundwave knew better.

On his perch just underneath the ceiling, Laserbeak hunched down more comfortably and cawed in amusement. This was going to be fun.

"Frenzy: fully functional?"

"Sure thing, boss! Functional and ready to kick some Autobutt!"

Rumble snickered at his brother's wit and slapped him so hard on the back that Frenzy stumbled. His brother retaliated with an elbow against his side, which left a dent both in Rumble and Frenzy's plating. "You fragger!" Rumble howled and threw himself at his twin with a scream of fury at the same time as Frenzy.

Just as their fists were about to connect with another's face plates, they were picked up by the scruffs of their necks. Yelling and kicking and hitting, the twins were raised to Soundwave's visor level. "Frenzy, Rumble: desist."

Ravage rubbed her head against Soundwave's leg and made a low rumbling sound.

"Agreed."

"Hey!" Rumble bellowed, all quivering outrage and tightly balled fists punching at thin air, wishing he were pummeling Ravage instead. "The kitty's talking slag about us! That's defi… defu… defacement!"

"It's deforcement, afthead!" Frenzy snapped and shot Ravage a look that somehow managed to convey 'you hurt my feelings' as well as 'I'm outraged' and 'I'm going to turn you into a pile of scrap metal' all in one. Frenzy happened to be talented like that.

"Rumble, Frenzy: silence," Soundwave ordered. No one but his cassettes would have known it, but he sounded exasperated.

"It's defamation, you blockheads!" Ratbat squawked whilst he did his best impression of ruffling his feathers.

"Is not!" Frenzy and Rumble yelled as one.

Soundwave vented air in an exasperated whoosh and gazed at Laserbeak, who was watching the entire spectacle with an amused glint in her red optics.

Laserbeak soared down and landed on Soundwave's wrist. She leant forward to give Rumble a warning peck on the helm, then shot Frenzy a sharp look before he could so much as dare to jeer. "Be quiet, dronelings! You can deafen Autobot audios later!"

The twins fell into sulky silence.

Soundwave watched them for a moment longer to make sure the lesson had stuck before he put them down. Laserbeak fluttered to his shoulder and he gave each of the twins a fond pat on the helm, an unspoken apology for picking them up. They didn't like reminders of their small size.

Rumble and Frenzy eyed another warily. They stepped back simultaneously with scornful glares.

"That's an ugly dint, Rumble!" Ratbat jeered. "It's going to cost you a good cube of high-grade to get Hook to hammer it out!"

Rumble raised his arm and peered at his side. There was, indeed, a little scratch, barely a dent, but quite enough for a temperamental cassette to get worked up over with the proper encouragement.

Ravage's optics dimmed in despair as the yelling started all over again, complete with small cassette feet pounding on the deck plates as Frenzy ran and Rumble gave chase.

Laserbeak nuzzled Soundwave's helm. She was a model cassette, wasn't she? Nothing like these little rascals.

Soundwave petted her helm gently. "Mission imminent. Finish preparations." This was the stern tone that meant business. No more fooling around.

Immediately, the cassettes' full attention was on their boss.

Each of them ran a last systems check, ensuring that they were ready for whatever the Autobots might throw at them.

The air of professionalism lasted exactly until each one of them had reported that they were at operating at optimal levels and Soundwave had opened his cassette tray.

"I'm not going into the tray next to his!" Rumble spat and shot his twin a vile look. "He dented me!" He raised his left arm and pointed at the little dent in his otherwise gleaming and flawless armor. "See, boss? Fragger mauled me! It took me forever to get out all the dents!"

"You whine like a minibot!" Frenzy chortled, stuck out his glossa at his twin and transformed into cassette mode just in time to evade his brother's fist.

There was nothing to do for Rumble but stand by and seethe as Frenzy inserted himself into Soundwave's cassette tray with a particularly smug sound. "Squishy fragger," he growled and transformed, aiming for the compartment the farthest from Frenzy's.

Ratbat and Ravage followed in quick succession, eager to get to the real battlefield.

Laserbeak remained behind, basking for a moment longer in Soundwave's undivided attention and the rare quiet. "Can't we leave them behind to be captured by the Autobots?" she asked, the tiniest whining undertone in her voice. She whined as well as the other cassettes, but she happened to be dignified about it, thank you very much.

There was a long pause. "Suggestion: tempting."

The last sound Soundwave heard from Laserbeak before she transformed was her laughter.

Megatron didn't ask why Soundwave looked frazzled before the mission had even begun.

A good leader knew better than to ask questions when he didn't want to hear the answer.

The end


End file.
